Ryan Garcia return date revealed after suffering hand injury in Mario Barrios fight

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While Ryan Garcia celebrates finally becoming a world champion, his team are plotting his next move behind the scenes.Last month in Las Vegas, ‘King Ry’ dropped Mario Barrios in the opening 30 seconds en route to claiming the WBC welterweight title via a lopsided unanimous decision.Garcia defeated Barrios by margins of 119-108, 120-107, and 118-109 to claim the WBC welterweight titleGettyDespite having it all his own way, Garcia came out of the bout nursing an injured right hand.Thankfully, his manager, Guadalupe Valencia, has confirmed to esteemed boxing journalist Dan Rafael that the injury is only a sprain.“The hand is much better,” Valencia said. “Luckily, he only has to rest it. He will start full camp top of May.”Valencia added that the plan is for Garcia to return to the ring in the middle of July to headline a Ring Magazine card.Conversations regarding his opponent are expected to kick off next week.And while boxing fans have been clamouring to see Garcia run it back with bitter rival Devin Haney, their timelines are unlikely to line up.That is because Haney is close to finalising terms for a WBO and WBA welterweight unification clash with Rolly Romero on May 30.“I can’t say that it’s a done deal yet,” Haney told Ring Magazine earlier this month.“We are working on it [with Romero]. I think that it’s very likely that it will happen [next].”A rematch between Garcia and Haney is unlikely to happen nextGettyWho could Ryan Garcia fight next?While a rematch against Haney is seemingly off the table, a fight with Shakur Stevenson remains a genuine possibility. Garcia called out the WBO super lightweight champion in the immediate aftermath of his win over Barrios.Due to the size disparity between the pair, Stevenson initially suggested they meet at a 144lbs catchweight.However, Garcia has since declared that he will move back down to 140lbs to challenge for the belt Stevenson snatched from Teofimo Lopez in January. “Forget the catchweight s***,” Garcia wrote on X. “Let’s do it for real.“I want to take your belt and snatch it right off you.”Boxing scheduleFor all the upcoming fights and results this year, check out talkSPORT.com’s  boxing schedule.